Innholdsfortegnelse for 14/12/2016 i Autocar

Caterham will build a new front-engined, rear-wheel-drive, fully enclosed sports car to sell alongside its Seven model — if it can find a suitable brand as a project partner, the company’s boss has revealed. The car is likely to be based around the abandoned but highly regarded C120 concept created with Renault-owned Alpine in 2014. Caterham’s boss, Graham Macdonald, indicated that there was a great sense of regret that this project never came to fruition and he said the company would have no hesitation in picking up the plans again in the right circumstances. The British firm is looking to enter a more mainstream area of the car market with a new model — something it tried in the 1990s with the Caterham 21. Macdonald suggested such a car would…

Mitsubishi will launch a Nissan Qashqai rival next year as it bids to capitalise on its sales growth by offering a full range of SUVs in a booming market. The new car, yet to be officially named, is expected to be revealed at the Geneva motor show in March. It will be larger than the ASX and sit below the Outlander in Mitsubishi’s range. Sources suggest the car will stand out for its coupé-like styling and expressive design. In the past, the firm has erred towards traditional boxy designs, but in 2014, it hired Tsunehiro Kunimoto, who spent 40 years at Nissan and worked on, among others, the Juke. “Design is increasingly at the forefront of Mitsubishi’s planning,” said a source. “It will take time for the changes to come…

AUTOCAR IS CONTINUING its media partnership with the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship for the next two years. The deal means Autocar logos will appear on all of the competing cars as well as the podium and interview backdrops during the 2017 and 2018 racing seasons. Regular features, news, competitions and blogs will be published by Autocar and its video channels will host official BTCC videos alongside exclusive content. The renewed deal follows a successful three-year tie-up and this latest agreement with Autocar and other associated Haymarket Consumer Media brands guarantees expanded media coverage of the series. Alan Gow, BTCC series director, said: “Joining forces to appeal to current fans — while attracting new followers to both the championship and Haymarket’s publications — was always at the forefront of…

SMALL DIESEL-POWERED cars are expected to be phased out in the next two to three years and replaced by petrol-engined models using 48V mild hybrid technology, according to Volkswagen R&D chief Frank Welsch. With tightening emissions regulations and real-world fuel economy testing coming into force, the cost of developing diesels is set to rise steeply. But with those costs being passed on to customers and profit margins on small cars already being so slight, Welsch believes few buyers will accept the price premium for a diesel on smaller models such as the Volkswagen Polo. “Today, diesel engines are more expensive [than petrol engines] and this distance is going to grow as we have to work to tougher standards,” said Welsch. “We have enough customers for diesel in cars like Polo…

BENTLEY IS POISED to launch a new line of two-seat sports cars based on the EXP 10 Speed 6 concept car first revealed in 2015. However, Bentley CEO Wolfgang Dürheimer has revealed there is a possibility it will not be built in Britain unless there is more clarity about Brexit negotiations. Dürheimer is seeking board approval to push the sports car into production and expects a decision in mid-2017. If it gets the green light, it would rival two-seaters from Aston Martin, Ferrari and McLaren and be priced from around £150,000. “If we can add a third model line alongside the Continental and Bentayga, then Bentley will be on a very sound footing for the future,” said Dürheimer. “Having all of these lines would allow us to maintain volume in…

“It deals with twists and turns leagues better than its 1995kg should allow. It is magnificent” The 1980s was a decade when everything from hairdryers to stereos had the word ‘turbo’ emblazoned across them. As did many cars, of course. The most iconic turbo-isation of them all was arguably Porsche’s and, even today, a ‘Turbo’ decal affixed to the back of a Porsche AG product creates a buzz. Welcome, then, the new Porsche Panamera Turbo. So what’s new? There’s more power, despite downsizing the V8 from 4.8 to 4.0 litres. The extra output is thanks to two new twin-scroll turbochargers, which are now mounted centrally in the engine’s vee and, says Porsche, more responsive as a result. Cylinder deactivation – so eight cylinders become four on a light throttle –…

“You can even submerge the front grille in water and not conk the engine” It’s the seats. They’re the real and most obvious difference now between a new Land Rover Discovery and its Range Rover and Range Rover Sport siblings – those seven seats and what can be done with them. When the new, fifth-generation Discovery was revealed in September, with its new look and added levels of luxury, it appeared to be treading on the toes of the big Range Rover pair and had maybe even lost its own sense of identity. Three months later, when you then see a Range Rover next to a Mk5 Discovery, sit in the respective cabins, look at the price lists and go for a drive off road, making full use of the…

What a year for the car. The past 12 months have produced a right-hand-drive Ford Mustang, a new, turbocharged generation of Porsche 911, the scandalously pretty Aston Martin DB11 and even an electrified –and electrifying – follow-up to the Honda NSX. What better way to celebrate 2016 than by simply picking our personal favourites and going for a two-day spin? We even found a Christmassy hook to hang it on, locating a Nasareth and Bethlehem, tiny villages both, at each end of Wales for the road test triumvirate to drive between. In a year that variously featured the Ferrari 488 GTB, the Porsche 911 R, the quickest Tesla yet, the most powerful Caterham we’ve seen and the very first Bentley SUV, the contenders for such a pilgrimage were less than…

Fifteen new and variously different takes on the modern SUV, 13 sports cars, nine hatchbacks, four saloons, three supercars, two estates, two cabriolets and one lonely people-mover. That was what the bones of 2016 amounted to, as recorded by the Autocar road test desk. One car a week, every week – same test every time, come what may. Look more closely at the list of cars that appear at the bottom of the opposite and following pages and you may note the odd highlight. That one of those saloons was a 500bhp EV, for example, while another was Europe’s first widely available hydrogen fuel cell car. As you may remember, one of those cabriolets was the two-and-a-half-tonne, £264,000 Rolls-Royce Dawn, and two out of the three supercars scored near-perfect five-star…

CHASSIS Impossible to look beyond the 911 R this year. Porsche has been in the business of merging tactility, feedback, stability and a theatrical sense of fun since forever — but even on its scale, the sensational R is something to behold. ENGINE Now, we like the Audi R8’s V10 but, you know, we’ve driven the Ferrari F12 tdf, too, and we think it’s that. WHEELS Optional carbon-compound rims from the BMW M4 GTS. Mixed sizes, and each one saves 7kg versus forged aluminium. A snip at €12,500 (roughly £10,500) a set. STEERING McLaren 570S, for its dead-eyed accuracy, heavyweight conviction and the kind of instinctive rate of response that has suddenly become a rarity. GEARBOX The manual gearbox in the Porsche 911 R. Not because it’s the best manual…

HMS Bulwark doesn’t operate at the glamorous end of the warship spectrum. It doesn’t have the presence of an aircraft carrier, or the power of a destroyer, or the stealth and chunky-jumpered romance of a nuclear submarine. If it were part of a rock ’n’ roll tour, it wouldn’t be the tour bus or the big stage truck. It would be the last Transit van away from the venue and the first Transit to arrive at the next one, having been driven non-stop through the night. As a result, there’s rather a lot to like about HMS Bulwark. No other ship has quite the same versatility. No other ship has quite so many purposes and roles. Bulwark has an unparalleled blend of manpower, firepower, intelligence and nous and no task…

“Rover 25s are good little commuter cars from just a few hundred quid” Just because a marque is six feet under does not mean the models it once made are no longer usable, relevant or even desirable. Quite the opposite, in fact. Dead marques have never been cooler, better value or more worthy of your reappraisal. So let’s dig up old favourites, some of which have been reborn, in which case we’ll consider the dead and gone models from the old company, and see how we could get along together now. The list of dead British brands is almost endless. From ‘A’ for Allard to ‘W’ for Wolseley, you can invest in dozens of expired classics that might make it to a damp field on a summer weekend for a…

Ben Summerell-Youde, Autocar’s very own in-house car designer, has chosen his three favourite creations of 2016, previewing cars coming to a showroom near you soon. Or not, in the case of Autocar’s vision of a car of the future. “I wasn’t constrained by any manufacturer styling influences, so I could be more creative,” says Ben. He did BMW’s job for them in designing the upcoming 8 Series (“Their current style would really suit a mega-GT”) and he turned his hand to designing an interior for the first time in previewing the reborn McLaren F1. “A three-seat layout for the new F1 couldn’t be a better place to start designing interiors,” he says.…

Among armchair Formula 1 experts, familiar questions surround Renault’s British driver, Jolyon Palmer, son of UK circuit supremo and former grand prix driver Jonathan. They’re the ones that always follow young racers with famous fathers. Did the name help? Is he quick enough? Does he deserve it? Damon Hill and Nico Rosberg know all about it. The irony is that by the time any young driver gets to F1, the questions have long been answered – especially in Jolyon Palmer’s case, when the rising star has already been champion of F1’s ferocious feeder formula, GP2. Palmer doubtless benefited from the fact that his dad runs the UK’s best racing school – just as Michael Schumacher learned wheel-to-wheel racing on the family kart track – but the truth is that no…

An expert’s view JAMES AGGER, JAMES AGGER AUTOSPORT “I’ve been selling and servicing Chimaeras since 1998. It’s a practical car, but you have to look after it. Preventative maintenance — checking the chassis and treating any corrosion, and replacing old hoses and bushes, for example — will save you grief later on. It’s all about future-proofing the car. Anticipate and fix problems and a Chimaera will give you miles of faithful service. I’ve been to Le Mans and back five times in mine. Any bargains you see will need work, no question.” Buyer beware… • ENGINE The V8 is bulletproof, even the 5.0, despite what some people say. Chains last around 100,000 miles. The oil and filter should have been changed every 6000 miles. The cooling system was a little…

VAUXHALL CROSSLAND X | MID-2017 This small SUV will sit above the Mokka X and below the new Zafira-sized Grandland X large SUV. Described as a “family-friendly urban vehicle”, the Crossland X is a replacement for the Meriva MPV. Price£14,000 (est) DECEMBER 2016 Aston Martin Vanquish S, Lamborghini Centenario, Mini Clubman JCW, Tesla Model X JANUARY 2017 Bentley Bentayga Diesel, Bugatti Chiron, Citroën C3, Dacia Duster update, Logan MCV update, Sandero update, Sandero Stepway update, Ford Mustang Black Shadow, Mustang Blue Edition, Hennessey Mustang HPE800, Hyundai i10 update, Mazda MX-5 RF, Peugeot 3008, Renault Twingo GT, Zoe update, Skoda Octavia update, Skoda Kodiaq, Suzuki Ignis, Toyota C-HR, Prius Plug-in Hybrid, Volkswagen Golf update FEBRUARY 2017 BMW 5 Series, Ford Ecosport update, Kia Rio, Land Rover Discovery, Mini Countryman, Peugeot 5008,…

“The E50’s launch will be part of AMG’s 50th anniversary celebrations” The new Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupé line-up will be crowned by an AMG-engineered E50 4Matic mild hybrid model to be unveiled during the latter half of next year, Autocar can exclusively reveal. To be launched as part of the extensive 50th anniversary celebrations planned for Mercedes’ AMG performance arm next year, the potent two-door will be among the first models to receive the German car maker’s all-new M256 in-line six-cylinder petrol engine that is set to have its debut in the S-Class. Running a conventional turbo in combination with an electrically driven compressor and a 48V electrical system, the 3.0-litre unit delivers 402bhp in standard guise. However, a series of tweaks, including higher boost pressure and internal modifications, is set…

LAMBORGHINI’S FIRST hybrid — a plug-in — will be its new Urus SUV, according to R&D chief Maurizio Reggiani. It will be the only hybrid in the Lamborghini line-up and be offered alongside a twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 Urus. Lamborghini’s first SUV since the LM002 (1986-1993) is likely to appear next year and go on sale in 2018. Like the Audi Q7 and Bentley Bentayga whose platform it shares, it will also feature 48V-powered active anti-roll suspension. “The design [of the Urus] is pure Lamborghini,” said Reggiani. “It has evolved considerably since the [2015] concept and the finished car is much better inside and out.” Turbocharging will be “completely mandatory” for the Urus, he said, because an SUV needs huge torque. “A supersports car is completely different; you need the responsiveness…

A family of Bentley Bentaygas is being evaluated as the Crewe-based firm bids to capitalise on the luxury SUV’s runaway sales success. Plans include a coupé-styled version of the car, a long-wheelbase variant and possibly a high-performance limited-edition model in the vein of the Continental GT3-R. Despite being one of the most controversial Bentleys yet — as the firm’s first SUV and now its first diesel model — the Bentayga has been critically acclaimed and exceeded sales expectations. The firm anticipated making 3600 Bentaygas in 2016 but will end the year having delivered around 5600. The Bentayga coupé is expected in around 2019 if it gets the board approval of the Volkswagen Group, Bentley’s parent company. That would coincide with the facelift of the standard car and draw fresh interest…

Ford can easily build an all-wheel-drive version of the next Fiesta — which raises the possibility of a hot all-wheel-drive version of the next ST model. The new Fiesta is based on a modified version of the same platform as the Ecosport SUV, which is available as a 4x4 in some m a r ket s . “The platform in general can take 4x4,” Ford of Europe’s head of vehicle engineering, Joe Bakaj, told Autocar. He wouldn’t say if future hot Fiestas would take the same four-wheel-drive route as the Ford Focus RS. However, he did say an all-wheel-drive version of the new Active crossover-styled variant of the Fiesta is unlikely.…

“The LC feels alive in a way that no Lexus apart from the LFA has before” It’s hard not to stare at the Lexus LC, the latest – and most striking – in a series of challenging designs intended to make lovers and haters stop and ask: “What’s going on with Lexus?” The answer is a not so quiet revolution, and it hits something of a crescendo with the launch of this sports car-cum-GT, available with V8 or hybrid power. The root of this wholesale shift from a quiet, eminently rational brand to one that is wilfully edgy – shouty, even – stems from the ambitions of Akio Toyoda, who, you might recall, is company chairman, has direct Toyota family lineage and has made it his personal mission to make…

“Versatile, luxurious and oh so effortlessly grown-up, this is a special car” The Bentley Bentayga has confronted and batted away criticism from its inception, and here’s another hurdle for it to clear: the arrival of a diesel engine, Bentley’s first. It raises all sorts of questions, chiefly over whether a diesel can ever deliver the driveability and refinement that befits the brand. Those are qualities that have served Bentley well for 97 years, lest anyone be in any doubt about the heritage being toyed with here. This being a Bentley, it’s no ordinary diesel, although it is one co-developed with Audi. It’s a triple-charged 4.0-litre V8, which uses two twin-scroll turbochargers supplemented by an electrically driven supercharger, and it weighs 3kg more than the flagship twin-turbo 6.0-litre W12 petrol engine.…

We say we haven’t driven the new Discovery on solid ground, but that’s not strictly true. In fact, we’ve had a run in it at a heady 3mph forwards and then backwards again for 100 metres or so on the runway top of the new HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier, of all places. Jaguar Land Rover and the Royal Navy have a long history together, the navy transporting JLR’s cars around the world on occasion, chiefly for royal dignitaries, and the two working together to promote UK engineering. Land Rover took three new Discoverys onto the deck of the mighty new aircraft carrier while it’s being built at the Rosyth Dockyard ahead of its maiden voyage next spring and planned full operation in 2021. There wasn’t anything else to learn…

“ In 2008 I raced a V8 Vantage and I swear it wasn’t as loud as this one ” Matt Prior, Aston Martin Vantage GT8, BBDC 2016 “ The 718’s trim quality is as distant from the Elise’s as I imagine Kensington Palace is from the inside of a Weatherspoon’s ” Nic Cackett, Porsche 718 Boxster S vs Lotus Elise Cup 250 “ It’s like a lion cub, one of the cutest things you’ll ever lay your eyes upon that wants nothing more than to play and play until it can manoeuvre itself into a position where it can sink its fangs into your backside. The trick is not to let it ” Andrew Frankel, Peugeot 205 GTi “ This is still a good engine, and it’s still in the…

“It’s easier to ix something than improve what’s already good” If Ian Callum, Jaguar’s design director, were to put his pen down today, his position high in the design firmament would be secure forever. This is the man whose Aston Martin DB7 design saved its maker in the early 1990s, after which he designed the Vanquish, DB9 and Vantage, which set Aston on a whole new path. A few years later, Callum’s vision of the future allowed Jaguar, whose management at the time wanted to keep it handcuffed to worn-out traditions, to leapfrog two design generations and become modern again – starting with the XF in 2007 and leading to today’s XE, F-Pace and now I-Pace. But Callum refuses to “wallow in glory”, as he puts it. “I’m lucky to…

It is finished. We first anticipated writing this short, triumphant sentence about six weeks ago, when we began to conceive, with the help of top-class UK designers and engineers, an all-new Volkswagen Golf-sized family hatchback for 2025 to 2030 and beyond. The car you see here, both as a 1:5-scale model and as a series of elaborate, almost photo-real digital drawings, is called the Share P42. It is our car for the future, a five-door C-segment hatchback proposed both for shared and private ownership by Autocar’s journalists, working with experts from the Coventry-based engineering services firm Envisage Group. Autocar’s angle? To investigate what a car planned for two to three generations’ time might be like, and to understand the problems and thought processes the world’s real-time car creators are facing…

BENTLEY HERITAGE RACER The Bentley Heritage Racer is a great toddler starter car. Inspired by the Bentley Boys 4.5-litre racer that won Le Mans in 1927, it has been handcrafted from steel and sprayed in British Racing Green paint. It also has an exquisitely stitched leather seat and steering wheel and an authentic-looking mesh grille. Details that give it a proper Bentley air include the painted-on black bonnet strap and chunky bonnet mascot. It’s a ride-on car without a motor that’s suitable for children aged two and upwards. Price £195 From shop.bentleymotors.com BOBBY-AMG GT S This small, lightweight ride-on is based on the Mercedes-AMG GT S sports car and wears ‘whisper’ tyres and black cross-spoke rims that are similar in design to the forged wheels of the real…

There are experts like RPi Engineering, which can sort out any issue and help you to set up a Chimaera, and TVR Parts Ltd is the authorised manufacturer for parts. Rover and Daimler parts can be bought from Rimmer Brothers. When it comes to Saabs, there is, among others, saabparts.com  and neobrothers.co.uk. The truth is that your best friend may be the salvage yard — not necessarily your local one but any you can contact on the internet. The online auctions are great, too, but you knew that. As Rover and Saab owners will know, when a maker goes belly up, so do their rights and responsibilities. But if a vehicle meets the required criteria of age and mileage, it may qualify for an independent warranty. For the…

“New Year’s Day at Brooklands attracted 7000 people and 1600 classic cars last time” Here’s how it always goes. You storm into the Christmas-New Year break in a flurry of overwork and frenzied present buying like the last of the late brakers, and then the lay-off abruptly begins. For the first couple of days, you’re absorbed with family over-indulgence and all is well. But soon, doubts creep in. You’ve been anticipating the 10-day ritual Christmas break all year, but are you making the most of it? In a few days, when you’re back to work and friends are swapping tales of year-end achievements, what will you contribute? What should you be doing in the meantime? Perhaps we can help. If you’re like us, you’ll want to do something with cars.…

“When you turn up in a BMW i8, you look like you have just come back from the future” Out Of Your League Award for the car you want to impress your better half with WINNER BMW i8 HIGHLY COMMENDED BENTLEY CONTINENTAL GT A CLOSE ONE here between the Bentley Continental GT and BMW i8, but the i8’s concept car looks, rarity value and wow factor secured it the win, with seven votes to five. Nothing else picked up more than one, although Matt Prior’s campaign for the Nissan Navara – “because in straitened times, women want a rufty-tufty bloke who can kill his own dinner” – sadly never got the backing it so richly deserved. Why the i8, then? “Still rare and different enough that when you turn up…

The forgotten Italian hot hatch The Grande Punto was a pretty enough hatchback, and everyone seems to have forgotten about the Abarth performance version. This one has scuffed alloys and tyres at the end of their life, but it’s a one-owner car and therefore a genuine example. It’s from 2009, has covered 66,000 miles and is up for £4750. I spy, with my little eye… It is hard not to love an Aston Martin, and this DBS is apparently the Casino Royale colour, which explains why the seller mentions it several times. Anyway, it’s a 2009 example with 34,000 miles showing and it seems good value at £89,990 compared with others on the market. It appears to have all the DBS bits, with a recent service and newly fitted tyres,…

1 S Series Styled after the TVRs of the 1970s, the S Series was an instant hit when it was launched as an entry-level model in 1986. Today, along with the Wedge, it’s one of the most affordable TVRs, with the V6 models especially looking like great value. The early S used Ford’s 2.8-litre Cologne V6, but from the S2 onwards, that got upgraded to a 2.9, which is the one to go for. About £7000 should get you a solid, clean S3 that has lots of history and has had plenty of work done. Chassis rust is, as always, a problem, although also check for play in the steering rack, which could suggest a worn universal joint. 2 ‘Wedge’ ‘Wedge’ TVRs — the Tasmin-based roadsters so named for their…

We spent a morning riding in a pre-production prototype of the E-Class Coupé with Peter Kolb, who has overseen development of the new two-door. The prototype is the E400 Coupé, which runs a twin-turbo 3.0 V6 making 328bhp at 5250rpm and 354lb ft between 1200rpm and 4000rpm. Right away it’s clear that the model lacks neither straight-line performance nor mechanical refinement in the most soothing of its four driving modes. It’s only when we approach a series of corners and Kolb switches from Comfort mode to Sport that Mercedes’ efforts to imbue the V6 with a hint of sportiness are exposed, as a raspy crackle is unleashed through the exhaust on the overrun. Along with performance and fuel economy, Kolb says the prime objective during development was enhancing the handling…

MINI IS SET to launch a hardcore John Cooper Works GP version of its current three-door hatchback. A JCW GP has featured in the first two generations of the Mini under BMW ownership, and company boss Peter Schwarzenbauer has confirmed the model is likely to appear again. “The John Cooper Works GP is an important part of the Mini brand,” he said. “It has worked well for us in the past and I don’t see why it wouldn’t again in the future.” The previous, 2013 JCW GP had a stripped-out cabin that replaced the rear seats with a thick strut brace, adjustable coil-over suspension, a significant boost in power and braking performance and a more hardcore chassis tune. Expect a similar recipe for the new model, but it’s unlikely to…

A HARDCORE, HYBRID-powered Lexus LC F sports car could be developed, although insiders say the project has yet to be given the green light. The new Lexus coupé is set to be launched in the UK next autumn with an LC 500 powered by a 467bhp V8 and an LC 500h that uses a 354bhp V6 coupled to an electric motor. Rivals include the Porsche 911, Jaguar F-Type, Maserati GT and BMW 6 Series, although Lexus describes the car as having long-distance GT cruising capabilities. The LC was developed to highlight Lexus’s sporting credentials and a new focus on dynamic capability, leading to speculation that an F model was inevitable. Koji Sato, Lexus’s chief engineer, denied such a project was under way but conceded that a hybrid could be more…

“We want to operate at a price level comparable with other systems, such as the London Underground” The Volkswagen Group’s new brand, Moia, is to focus on the emerging market for mobility on demand, which Volkswagen is now developing as a second pillar to its business alongside its traditional car sales model. Moia will begin by offering a ride hailing service before moving into car pooling and shuttle services using purpose-built battery-electric vehicles that will, in time, most likely be self-driving. This new special-purpose vehicle, or SPV, will be built by one of Moia’s VW Group sister companies and wear both brands’ badges. The first model is likely to be unveiled in an early form next year. Moia chief executive Ole Harms said: “It will be built to purpose, so…

ALPINE IS SET to kick off the launch of its new mid-engined sports car with a high-spec Première Edition. The Première Edition is available for reservation now on a smartphone app that can be downloaded from the manufacturer’s website, alpinecars.com. The Première Edition is limited to 1955 cars, a reference to the year when Alpine founder Jean Rédélé first established the company, which has been reborn by Renault after an absence of more than two decades. Alpine hasn’t revealed many details about the Première Edition, beyond saying it will feature “exclusive appointments”, suggesting a higher spec than the standard versions that will follow. The UK price and technical specification will be revealed early next year. Autocar understands the engine will be a turbocharged 1.8-litre four-cylinder unit derived from the 1.6…

The E350d All Terrain is Mercedes-Benz’s answer to the the Audi A6 3.0 TDI Allroad and Volvo V90 D4 Cross Country. The new high-riding five-seater builds on the standard E350d Estate, receiving, among other things, standard Air Body Control suspension and 4Matic four-wheel drive. Visual differentiations run to a redesigned front bumper, altered grille, black plastic cladding within the wheel arches, integrated roof rails, beefed-up sills and a new rear bumper with chrome-look protection in its lower section and integrated trapezoidal tailpipes. Styling changes inside include brushed aluminium trim within the dashboard, stainless steel pedals and floor mats with ‘All Terrain’ lettering. The equipment level is based on the AMG Line of the standard E-Class Estate. The E350d All Terrain certainly doesn’t want for versatility. There’s 640 litres of load…

The Discovery has been the making of Land Rover. Before it arrived, the Solihull company was best known for two oddly disparate models that just sort of happened. The first was a Midlands-made Jeep substitute that turned out better than its creators could ever have imagined. The second, more luxurious and refined, was hastily styled by its engineers and powered by a stray American V8 – and proceeded to amaze the world by creating a class that is still potent 40 years on. Not that things started well. The Discovery launch at the Frankfurt show in September 1989 was an apologetic affair. The Germans showed what they thought of the 1980s British motor industry by hiding Land Rover’s stand away in Hall 9, with other also-rans from Japan and eastern…

MODEL TESTED L15 ALBION-CLASS LANDING PLATFORM DOCK Price £210 million • Power 17,000bhp • Top speed 18 knots • 0-18 knots Eventually • Range 8000 miles • Max g 360deg in approx 5min Sometimes your Christmas road test is simple to pigeonhole. It might be a truck or a train or an aircraft or a V8-powered shopping trolley, but it will be singular of purpose. This year? Hmm. Not so fast, road testers. This is HMS Bulwark, you see, a Royal Navy Albion-class landing platform dock, or amphibious assault ship, in technical terms. It is not the newest warship, nor the biggest, nor the fastest, nor many other things that would sometimes mark out an Autocar Christmas road test. But its multiplicity makes it astonishingly special. It has more facets…

“The car was a touch scruffy, but structurally and mechanically it was better than sound’’ Andrew Frankel Porsche 968 Sport (1994) DID I REALLY buy a 968 so I could drive a 918 Spyder? It seems I did. Or at least that’s what I keep on telling myself. The story goes that Porsche had its hypercar in Scotland and extended an invitation to those journalists who wanted to drive it. The only snag was that they had to turn up in their own Porsche, one of which I did not have. What I did have is a mate who’d owned this Riviera Blue 968 Sport for the past 16 years and who’d bought it from my brother, so its provenance was impeccable. The car was cosmetically a touch scruffy, but…

The radio-controlled car has long been one of the most eagerly awaited of presents. Computer games may be more popular than ever, but there’s something deeply satisfying about having a model of your favourite car that you can build, drive and upgrade. Because it’s Christmas, we’ve got four cars in to test. They range from the entry-level Tamiya Honda NSX to the massive 1/6th-scale Losi Audi R8 LMS. Although two come ready built, all are ‘hobby grade’ radio-controlled (RC) cars that can be repaired no matter how badly you crash them. It also means that even the cheapest car here is good for 20mph, with the potential to go much faster. If you really get hooked, there are clubs up and down the country that cater for those who want…

If there’s one thing Leavers and Remainers can agree on, it is surely this: although everyone knows we are on a path to somewhere, the prospect of Brexit raises so many more questions than it answers that we don’t know exactly how we’ll get to a conclusion or what it is. So it is with the automotive industry’s own Brexit-style dilemma, autonomous driving: we know it’s coming, but despite legislation and timelines being forged, the path to achieving it remains shrouded in fog and the final solutions – and complications arising from them – are far from certain. Little wonder that car buyers are confused. To discover the depth of just how confused, plus to delve deeper into the expectations of customers and opportunities for car makers, Autocar teamed up…

Two contrasting BMW static shots to start (far left), led by Stan’s 3 Series, which had a 10-second exposure to blur the running water into a mist. “Anything shorter is what the eye would see anyway,” he says. Luc’s M4 GTS studio shot had him experimenting with lighting techniques to make it look as moody and menacing as possible. Of his rather epic two-car drift shot, Luc says: “This is one of my favourite types of shot to do. There is loads of movement and action going on. Getting the positioning perfect was tricky, so achieving the shot I wanted took a fair few goes.” And a large tyre bill… Stan’s two pics here both come from a trip to Iceland to discover Formula Off Road. “The guy in the…

As a Mazda CX-5 owner, I was interested in the announcement of the new model (News, 16 November). Fast forward a week and more on the model’s importance to Mazda’s finances. Turn over the page and there it is again, in its advertised Soul Red, with the Mazda grille extending into the headlights. But wait: this one’s labelled as an MG ZS. You claim it’s got the “Anglo-Chinese car maker’s new Jaguar-like grille”. Hmm. Too many previously SUV-bereft makers jumping into the me-too SUV marketplace, I think. Peter Inwood Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire WIN Letter of the week wins this ValetPRO exterior protection and maintenance kit worth £58.95…

“Its 0-60mph times range from 4.8sec to 4.1sec and top speeds from 152mph to 169mph” Whatever next year’s all-new TVR turns out to be like, news of its development and of the company’s revival awakens memories of the wonderful, and wonderfully fickle, TVRs of yesteryear, among them the Chimaera. The model, which ran from 1993 to 2003, has a reputation for being practical and usable. Its boot can swallow two golf bags and the suspension (double wishbones all round) is comfortable, at least in TVR terms. Meanwhile, its Griffith origins mean many potential problems were identified and solved with the aid of that model’s unpaid development drivers, or owners. Designed with the help of Ned, TVR boss Peter Wheeler’s dog, who mistook the foam development model for a bone, it…

Porsche 911 Carrera From £73,500 Delivered on the eve of its sixth decade, the 991-generation 911 is as brilliant and distinctive as any before. GTS is the best. Jaguar F-Type From £51,300 A full-blooded assault on Porsche’s back yard, with noise, power and beauty. As characterful as any Jag, ever. Aston Martin V8 Vantage From £85,000 What the Vantage lacks in agility, it makes up for with presence and grunty V8 power. The V12 S is something special too, Lotus Evora From £64,000 The ride and handling put nearly everything else in its shade. Shame the interior doesn’t match the price tag. Nissan GT-R From £78,000 Monstrously fast Nissan is now a blunt instrument among sharper and more charismatic rivals.…